


The Sibling Trap

by orphan_account



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Amusement Park, Android Noah, M/M, Post-Canon, Post-Dark Side Of Dimensions, Sibling Bonding, foot fracture, parent trap plot, sibling shenanigans
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-25
Updated: 2019-07-25
Packaged: 2020-07-19 12:20:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,656
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19973974
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: After Atem's return to the living world, Mokuba and Noah devise a plot to get him and Seto together. With a little help from Isono, the plan is set in motion at Kaibaland! All they have to do if find a way to get the two alone in time for the fireworks show. The rest is up to them.





	The Sibling Trap

“So it’s like The Parent Trap?”

“Exactly.”

Mokuba and Noah sat together conspiratorially huddled in Mokuba’s closet. Between them was a large map of Kaibaland and the litter of several packages of opened snacks. Seto would never find them. They’d hung two flashlights from the hanger rack above them where they dangled and swung back and forth, casting their light over the hastily scribbled plans, knowing full well that there was no need for any such secrecy since Seto was away at work, but what fun was a secret plan without hiding and whispering? And snacks.

“All you have to do is convince Seto to take you to Kaibaland on Friday for the fireworks show,” Mokuba said. “I’ve already convinced Yami to take me.”

Noah picked up a handful of mix-matched board game pieces: two plastic “Sorry” pins, a metal “Monopoly” dog, a chess pawn, and some leftover green soldiers they’d scrounged up in a junk drawer.

“But what about Yugi and the others? If Yami comes to the park, he’s going to want to bring them along too. How do we get rid of them?”

Mokuba chuckled smugly. “I’ve already taken care of that. Bakura’s hosting a game night with the others. A tabletop role-playing game: Dungeons and Dragons. I suggested it. Since the memory world fiasco, he’s steered clear of those kinds of games. He _leapt_ at the opportunity to avoid it.”

“Perfect. That gives me two days to sigh and look bored for Seto. Guilting him into taking me to the park will be a piece of cake.”

“And I told him that I’ll be at game night with everyone, so he won’t be looking for me to come along.”

Noah munched on a handful of potato chips and maneuvered two pieces around the map: the black and white chess king pieces. “All we have to do is hang out with them for awhile before the show. I’m sure Yami will want to stay for it, but it’ll take some begging with Seto. Knowing him, he’ll try to get me home for dinner so I can charge.”

“How long is your battery life anyway?” Mokuba asked, watching Noah shove another handful of chips into his mouth.

“I get about two days of moderate power before I need a good charge. He’s working on an upgraded model for me, but I run so many functions, I drain quickly. He’ll probably try to get me home sooner if we go on any exciting rides. Do you know he won’t let me join the soccer club at school?”

“Why?”

“He’s either worried I’ll tear my skin open and expose my wiring, or he’s lecturing me about running down the battery and dropping in the middle of the field. I can’t even charge my phone on a slow day or he’ll look at me like I’m walking into highway traffic. To be honest, I won’t have to _fake_ being bored. Even Isono’s started to notice.”

He shoved another handful of chips in his mouth, crunching loudly. “That reminds me; we forgot about Isono. We have to think of a way to get him out of the picture too, or Seto might just send me with _him._ Maybe we should force him to take a day off.”

“Hey, easy on the chips! Those are from _my_ stash! You don’t even get anything from them anyway,” Mokuba said. He snatched them back and tossed him a bag of cookies instead.

“Listen, if you wanna whine about losing chips, whine to Seto. He’s the one who built me the tongue in the first place. Can I help it if the chips taste so good?”

“Go empty your crumb tray, you over-glorified toaster.”

Noah glared playfully at him, reached under his shirt, and pulled at something that made a clicking sound. He swiped his crumb tray out and emptied it over Mokuba’s head, letting dry bits of broken chips, cookies, and crackers rain down.

Mokuba shouted in disgust as he kicked his brother away. They both bolted out of the closet, Noah running for his life, waving the tray in the air, and Mokuba shaking the crumbs out on his bedroom floor.

“I don’t care how expensive the parts are—I’ll disassemble your kneecaps for that!”

Noah slammed the door from the hall and leaned against it as he put the crumb tray back in his stomach. “You gotta catch me first! Good luck getting the door open: these parts put together weigh nearly two hundred pounds!”

Mokuba ran against the door and pounded it open a crack as Noah shrieked and braced it closed again, laughing.

“You got crumbs in my hair!” Mokuba shouted. “I just took a bath this morning!”

“So comb them out, gremlin! Be glad he didn’t build me with saliva or it’d be mushy pulp in your hair instead.”

“I’ll comb _your_ hair, you giant green Furby! Let me out of here!”

“Pass me the chips and apologize for calling me a toaster first!”

“No way! They’re _my_ chips! And you already ate half the bag!”

“So you have half left! And Seto said you had to share, remember?”

“Nobody said it had to be fifty-fifty! Now let me out!”

A long shadow appeared from down the hall and Noah’s laughter halted in sudden horror. Then, seeing who it belonged to, he breathed out in relief.

“What are you boys doing?” Isono asked.

“Playing,” Noah said innocently.

“He stole my chips and won’t let me out of my room!” Mokuba protested.

“Master Kaiba,” Isono began. But he was cut off by Mokuba barging out of the door. Noah had stepped away, startled by his sudden appearance.

Noah cried out, startled as Mokuba made for him with a menacing grab. “Isono, help!” he cried, leaping onto his back.

Isono sputtered at the sudden, unexpected weight. Then, he and Noah fell forward.

Isono landed on his side.

Noah landed on Isono’s foot.

Noah jumped away. He and Mokuba gasped and stared in guilty horror.

That took care of Isono.

“You broke Isono’s foot?” Seto asked.

Noah and Mokuba stood beside each other, their heads cast down at the hospital floor. They were standing outside of Isono’s room while the doctor finished casting his foot. It was a fracture.

“It was my fault, Seto,” Mokuba said. “I was chasing Noah.”

“No! I provoked him! I emptied my crumb tray over his head!”

“You what?”

“But I called him a toaster first!”

“I ate all the chips!”

Seto raised his hands and they shut their mouths immediately. “It doesn’t matter who did what. Since neither of you were hurt, that’s fine, but you’re both on restriction. One week. No junk food. And I expect you to make your proper apologies to Isono. And no more involving him in your squabbles.”

If he wasn’t reprimanding them in such a serious tone of voice, they might’ve chuckled at the word “squabbles” coming out of his mouth.

“Now you two wait out here while I talk to him. And don’t make anymore trouble.”

As the door closed behind Seto, he caught Noah whispering, “I guess this means no fireworks.”

Isono smiled as Seto sat in the chair beside his bed. “It’s too much fuss, putting me in a bed over a little fracture. But when they saw the company name on the insurance forms…”

“And my signature. Don’t worry about it; I’ll cover everything. I can move you to a room with a better view if you want.”

“There’s no need. They’ll release me in a little while and I’ll be going home.”

“I’ll have a car sent. And you’ll be taking a vacation until it heals.”

“But Master Kai—”

“Eight weeks. I don’t want to see you in the house for at least six, understand?”

“Yes, sir.”

Isono sat back with a sigh. It was a well-deserved rest, but without him he was sure the house would fall into disarray. He was sure Mokuba would try to have burgers every night Seto worked late, and Noah would surely run down his battery. He’d forgotten to plug himself in at night three times. And he was sure Seto would get no sleep.

“So what happened?” Seto asked.

Isono smiled. “The young masters got into a small argument and gave chase. I got tripped up and young master Noah landed on my foot.”

Seto cringed. “I dropped his head on my foot once while I was putting him together. I can empathize.” Then his expression turned serious. “He shouldn’t be running.”

“If you will forgive me, master Kaiba, I think he ought to be running much more.”

Seto looked at him sternly. “His battery life is short. The android husk is too fragile. He could’ve damaged it today.”

“But he’s still a child. Children need to run and break things and grow.”

“He’s not a normal child, Isono. He’s a computer file running around in a mechanical doll. He won’t grow unless I download him into another body. It was a miracle his consciousness didn’t explode with the rest of the island system.”

“He’s not going to disappear if the body runs out of power,” Isono said gently.

Seto cradled his head in his hands, gripping his hair. “I know that.”

“And he’ll be fine if he breaks a little. It’s just like a regular body, only his repairs are faster to manage.” Isono chuckled and wiggled his leg.

Seto glared at him. “He’s an expensive piece of hardware.”

“Are you lacking funds?”

He rolled his eyes. “He should still respect it more.”

“He thinks of his body the way all boys do: a way to carry their heads from place to place. He doesn’t think of it like a smartphone he has to treat gently. He runs and jumps around and climbs trees just lik—”

“He’s been climbing trees!?” Seto cried, outraged. “He needs to be more careful!”

“No,” Isono said. His sudden tone stilled Seto. “He needs to be a child. For weeks he’s been sitting around the house, watching tv, playing video games, lazing around.”

“It’s not like he’ll get out of shape,” Seto grumbled.

“That isn’t the point. He needs to get out and do what children do.”

Seto looked at the door.

Isono smoothed out his sheets, satisfied. He’d been glad to see Noah and Mokuba running around, causing a ruckus. They were too well behaved. When he’d begun to clue into their most recent mischief, he’d delighted in it. It was a great help that Seto worked so late during the week. He’d caught Noah and Mokuba on the couch asleep, their plans laid out in the middle of the living room for anyone to see. Of course, he’d made sure to wake them up before they’d known he’d been in. When Noah “sat” on the tv remote and startled them awake, Isono had hustled away to the kitchen, where he hid the spare remote in a drawer. He waited until they’d hastily bundled up all their notes and dumped them in Mokuba’s room before he called them for dinner.

They were just like their brother in so many ways. But in so many others, Seto was the most difficult. Even so, there were ways he could contribute to the great scheme.

“It’s a shame,” he said, feigning disappointment. “I’d promised master Noah that I’d take him to Kaibaland this Friday to see the fireworks show. He’s been so cooped up lately. Since the soccer club sign-ups closed, he’s been rather depressed. And with master Mokuba spending so much time with his friends, I worry he’s feeling forgotten.”

Seto continued to stare at the door, but Isono caught the fall in his shoulders and grinned. He was relenting. He turned his head quickly as Seto eyed him.

“But breaking your foot … it would be rewarding bad behaviour.”

“He’s already punishing himself twice as much as I ever could.”

Seto grunted and said nothing more.

Seto barged into Noah’s room on Friday afternoon and announced, “Put your shoes on and grab a jacket. We’re going to the park.”

Noah snapped out of his funk and sat upright off the floor. “The park?” Seto wasn’t one for taking strolls through midtown, admiring the trees and birds.

“Kaibaland.”

Noah bolted to his feet. “Really! We can go? But why? How did you—?”

“Isono promised to take you, didn’t he?” Seto asked, looking gruff. “I took the afternoon off instead. Does that work for you?”

Noah twisted his fingers, looking no higher than Seto’s chin. “Is it okay? To go?”

Seto shrugged. “Isono promised. And he asked me to keep it. Do you want to go or not?”

Noah nodded violently. “I promise I’ll try not to have too much fun,” he said.

“Idiot. Nobody told you to do that,” Seto said. The door closed behind him.

Noah jumped up and fumbled for his shoes. He changed and put them on, forgoing the jacket, and raced into Mokuba’s room. He burst through the door, startling Mokuba.

“The operation is a go!” he said.

“What?”

“The Parent Trap!”

Mokuba jumped from the bed and tossed his book aside. “He’s taking you?”

“Yes! Apparently Isono promised to take me. I don’t remember asking him, but I’m not going to look a gift horse in the mouth. Did you already cancel on Yami?”

“No! I forgot all about him after the incident.”

“Then he’s still coming. Is he picking you up here? Is he waiting at the gate? And what time! Seto’s taking me now and we can’t have Yami waiting by the door. He’ll know something’s up.”

“I’m meeting him at Burger World for lunch first,” Mokuba said.

Noah took a deep breath. “Okay. What time should we get them together?”

“Whenever. How about at two, by the big clock? They’ve got lots of food vendor carts there. We could just bump into each other.”

“If Seto asks, you heard we’d be in the park and decided to ditch game night.”

“I’ll tell Yami that you’re supposed to be there with Isono. When we meet up, I can act surprised to see Seto.”

“Then we let them sit together on the rides and we’ll hang out in the periphery until the grand finale.”

“Okay. We’ll meet you in a couple hours then.”

Seto’s voice came from downstairs, calling for Noah to hurry up. He gave Mokuba a high-five and hurried down without a backward glance. It was time.

“Didn’t Isono break his foot?” Atem asked.

Mokuba’s grin faltered as they walked toward the park’s vendor square. “The park is pretty wheelchair accessible and Isono is very serious about keeping promises. Did Noah text you?”

“No. Kaiba did.”

Of course he did. They’d been texting a lot lately. There’s no way Seto would pass up an opportunity to complain about the two of them to Atem. He had probably texted him from the car on the way to the ER.

“Look! There they are!”

Mokuba ran ahead to join Noah who held a cone of cotton candy above his head. The junk food ban was on hold for the outing. Then a familiar figure appeared from around a vendor’s stand.

“At—Why are you here?” Seto said, surprised.

“So Isono couldn’t make it after all,” Atem said. He didn’t sound surprised.

Mokuba laughed nervously. “Hey, Seto! I didn’t know you would be filling in. Get off work early?”

“You were home when we left. I heard Noah crashing into your room from downstairs.”

“Doesn’t mean he told me where you were going.”

Seto smirked and crossed his arms. “It’s clear this was a set up. The two of you planned this meeting the moment I told Noah we’d be going to the park. You took perfect advantage of the change in situation.”

Seto flung and arm out and pointed to the Kaibadome duelling arena. “The next duel slot becomes free in half an hour!” He pulled his deck from his pocket and flashed it before Atem’s eyes. “I say we give them what they want. What do you say, pharaoh? Will you duel per my brothers’ requests?”

Noah, Mokuba, and Atem gave him withered looks.

“My … apologies, Kaiba. I didn’t bring my deck.”

“It’s right there on your belt!”

Atem opened his holster and pulled out the cards. They were all common booster pack cards with Yugi’s signature on them.

“Since people are still confusing me for him…” Atem said. “He knew there’d be lots of fans at Kaibaland, what with the dueling arena and all.” He put the cards away again and crossed his arms over his chest. He looked around the square and rocked on his feet. “Actually, when Mokuba invited me along, I was looking forward to exploring the park. I’ve only ever really been in the arena. I wanted to try some of the rides. It’s my first time in an amusement park, you know.”

Seto was dumbfounded. After a long moment, he put his deck back in his pocket.

“You came for the rides?”

Atem nodded. “Of course. I hear people talk about the park all the time. It’d be a nice change of pace, doing something normal after all that’s happened. And I’d rather not play games with Bakura—with Ryou—that involve little figures of our friends.”

Seto stared at him as if realizing for the first time that Atem had interests outside of duelling.

Mokuba and Noah shared cotton candy, munching as they waited for one of them to make a move. If not, they’d drag them to a ride—any random ride.

“So. Which ride is best?”

“What?”

“Which ride, Kaiba? I don’t know any of them.”

Seto faltered and looked at his younger brothers. “You guys pick. This is your outing, after all. What ride do you think would be the best to start with?”

Mokuba and Noah exchanged a look. The fireworks show was hours away. This could be their chance to have a bit of fun.

Noah wiped the sugar from his face and raised his hand high. “I know! Yami’s never been on any rides before right? We should work our way up to the wildest ones slowly.”

“About the closest he’s ever gotten was the Battle Tower elevator or whatever death game traps you’re always getting roped into playing. So you’ve got a strong stomach, but we need to figure out your limits. We don’t know how you work. You might be fine going up and down on drop rides really fast, but a slingshot side-to-side ride might make you hurl. Can you handle spinning? Going upside down? I think we’d better start from the easiest rides and work out way up.”

“I saw a poster for something called the Slifer Skyscraper at the entrance gate,” Atem said.

Noah laughed. “No way! We’re not going on a roller coaster like that until the end of the day. Baby steps, pharaoh. Don’t want to overdo it.”

“Come on!” Mokuba cheered. He grabbed Noah’s hand and started running. “To the very bottom rung! To Toon World park!”

“You’re kidding,” Seto groaned.

“Why? What’s Toon World park?”

Seto wiped a hand down his face. “Kaibaland is divided into park sections. Toon World is for the youngest park guests. Like, for _infants_. There’s a playground with swings and kiddy rides: merry-go-rounds and baby coasters.”

“Let’s go!” Atem said, eyes wide with excitement.

“But they’re pathetic at best!”

“But I’ve never tried one! I want to see this merry-go-round and your brothers are getting away. We have to keep an eye on them, don’t we? We’ll lose sight of them if we wait too long.”

He took firm hold of Seto’s sleeve and tugged him forward.

Seto looked round at the other park guests, an exasperated hand hiding a mortifying pleased expression. He let himself be led through the park.

Atem gaped up at the merry-go-round in delight. Noah and Mokuba were already on board. They sat together on two Blue Eyes White Dragon figures and waved. Atem waved back. Seto took his phone from his pocket and took their picture a couple of turns around as they posed. “Isono made me promise pictures,” he said.

“You should get on the third dragon with them. That’d make a great picture.”

“I’m _not_ getting on that kiddy ride.”

“Then you’ll miss the fun. Afraid of ruining your stoic reputation?”

Before Seto could respond, Atem was running toward the slowing ride. When it stopped, he hopped on the third dragon between Noah and Mokuba, who moved to let him in the middle. When the ride started up again, they took pictures together and waved at Seto. They called and coaxed him as he stubbornly waited by the conductor’s post until the ride ended.

“Just for one picture,” Atem pleaded. “You don’t even have to ride the ride. You’ll be on and off before it even starts.”

Noah and Mokuba got behind him and pushed him toward the steps. When Atem started tugging on his arm, it became evident he had no choice in the matter. The three brothers hopped on their dragons and posed for Atem, Seto with a neutral expression of annoyance. Atem took several pictures. Then, the ride began to move. Seto protested and was about to flag down the conductor, but Atem hopped on the back of his dragon and held onto the pole, effectively trapping him for the ride.

“Caught! Caught!” Mokuba sang.

“You designed the ride; it’s only fair you go on it at least once,” Noah added.

Seto sat stiffly on the saddle, Atem’s arms wrapped around him. It was a tight space. Atem laughed and clapped his shoulder as the ride went on. He made some teasing remarks, but Seto couldn’t hear them for the blood rushing in his ears. Atem fished his phone out of his pocket and clumsily tried to take a picture over Seto’s shoulder, which was hard with his height. The moment he heard the camera noise, Seto snatched up the phone and buried it in his coat pocket. “No more pictures!” he said.

“Aw, come on Kaiba. Have a little fun!” Atem protested.

Seto kept his eyes forward and willed his heart to stop pounding. Soon, his red face began to return to its normal color, at least from what he could see reflected in the gold pole. When the ride ended, Atem climbed back down and held a hand out for Seto. He was grinning, smug as a cat.

“What next?”

“Baby coasters,” Noah said.

Seto didn’t go on any more kiddy rides.

When they finally left Toon World, Mokuba announced their next destination with more excitement. They’d be headed to Monster park where the real rides were. They had a convenient list of the rides’ difficulty rankings and they headed to the easiest one. Most of the easier rides were the spinning kind. One of them featured hollowed seats that looked like the Kuriboh brothers, Scapegoats, and one Watapon. They managed to corral Seto into the Watapon seat. Atem and the younger two did most of the work spinning their figure around as the whole platform whirled. Seto sat back, trying to regain his dignity.

He got his revenge on the Bug Bash Bumpers. The world of Duel Monsters, like real life, was littered with insect cards. The bumper cars arena was gigantic, so they used their vast selection of insects in their design for the cars. Seto bombarded his brothers. And Atem crashed into him. Then the younger two were forgotten in favor of this new kind of duel. The bumpers kept score on a little screen. In this, at least, Seto won.

He flaunted his victory by choosing the next ride. Tired of kiddy play, he selected a moderate roller coaster: Curse of Dragon Clash.

“We’re sitting in the front,” he announced. “If you can’t handle the front row of such an easy ride, you might as well leave the park now.”

Atem threw him a determined look. “I’m not leaving until the end of the night, no matter how difficult the rides become.”

When their turn came, he was the first to hop in the car.

Mokuba and Noah sat in the middle where they could talk without being heard.

The car began its slow pull from the station when Mokuba turned to Noah. “It’s going pretty well,” he said. “We didn’t even have to force them to sit together. And right up front! I’m sure they’ll keep the trend up, knowing those two. It’ll be a duel. Atem’s bound to get scared on one of these rides and grab him, then it’ll be easy enough to trap them together on the ferris wheel at the end of the night. We’re geniuses.”

Then Mokuba turned and saw the expression on Noah’s face.

“Hey, what’s up?”

Noah blanched. “We are. This thing’s going pretty high.”

“So? You road roller coasters all the time in your virtual world. I thought you liked them.”

Noah clutched the rail as the ride poised at the top. “I didn’t have an actual _gut_ when I was virtual data. Now I’ve got a sick feeling in my stomach.”

“But your stomach’s a crumb tray,” Mokuba said. “What’s the big—?”

Then the coaster dropped.

The parkgoers screeched enthusiastically. Noah shrieked in horror.

Atem raised his hands as the car sped down, whooping with delight. He recalled the time he and Seto had jumped from the top of a building. It felt the same, only he knew they’d be perfectly safe. What he wasn’t prepared for were the sudden swoops up and to the side. This new sensation was amazing! He alternated bracing himself on the rail and raising his hands high. He was giddy with laughter and screaming.

Nobody would ever have noticed Seto’s white knuckled hands on the bar. They’d be too transfixed by his cool, confident expression.

Atem was light-headed and a little dizzy by the time they got off. Seto steadied him with a careful arm. Atem finally figured out how to breathe and regained composure. Then, he immediately pointed at the next coaster: Red Eyes’ Revenge.

Noah decided to sit on the bench for awhile.

Mokuba wandered off to get a crepe.

Seto looked dubiously at the roller coaster across the way. “Skipping right to the top section of the list, huh? They don’t put ‘Revenge’ in the title for nothing, you know.” He hadn’t been on a coaster in a long time. He hadn’t remembered them being so unsettling.

“I’m ready! That was so amazing, all the twists and turns and drops! Does this go upside down? The track flips just there, see? Is all of this really safe?”

Seto nodded. Atem dashed to the line in a wild buzz. Seto walked slowly after.

While they waited, Atem tugged at his sleeve and pointed to the screaming patrons as they turned upside down. There was a screen displaying pictures from a number of the more stomach-turning parts of the ride. He was excited to see how theirs would come out.

“You look like you might be turning into a coaster junkie, the way you’re jittering,” Seto commented. “Just remember to take a break after a couple or you might throw up. Didn’t you and Mokuba get lunch a little while back?”

“That was hours ago. I’ll be fine. What about you?”

Seto straightened his shoulders and leaned back casually. “I’ll be fine.”

“Did you even eat today?”

“I did. I had a business meeting at lunch.”

“You say that like you need an excuse to eat lunch.” Atem nudged his side playfully. “How about breakfast?”

“Coffee and something small. I’m not hungry in the mornings.”

“Dinner?”

“Always. Dinner food is the best kind.”

“You should show me where the best place in the park is for dinner. I hear the menus are all themed.”

“Mokuba will just want to eat out of the vendor carts.”

“Well let him. I want to sit down for dinner.”

Seto looked down at the top of Atem’s head. He was absorbed, watching the cars zooming by overhead.

“You know,” he began, “Noah will probably want to eat from the carts too. He always follows Mokuba’s lead when he’s doing something new.”

“Great. The table will be that much quieter.”

Seto noticed Atem was standing comfortably close. He looked down at the hand dangling just beside his. He flexed his fingers, watching. Then the gate opened, letting in the new rush of riders, and Atem hurried to claim their front seats.

Atem and Mokuba howled at the souvenier photos on the screen. Seto had faired bravely for the first half of the ride, then the car flipped upside down and he lost all composure. He looked sick all the rest of the way, gripping his pulldown vest for all he was worth. Noah clapped his shoulder sympathetically. Atem bought a full collection. They’d pick them up on the way out of the park.

“I’m going to make that one my phone background tomorrow,” he said, pointing to one where Seto’s eyes bulged in distress, his mouth a tight line. He took a picture of it with his phone and texted it to Yugi. He’d managed to snatch it back at the end of the ride from the personal belongings safety bag.

“I’ll have them delete it and you won’t get a refund.”

“Spoilsport. Come on, I’ll treat you to an ice cream,” Atem offered.

“It still won’t save your pictures from being deleted.”

“Yugi’s already got the best one saved in his messages.”

Atem marched ahead. Seto followed him as before. Triumphantly forgotten, Noah and Mokuba nudged one another and celebrated with another crepe. Thus began the second part of their operation: spying. They trailed after the two, hiding behind carts and maps and benches to watch how things played out.

Atem decided on caramel nut ice cream, wanting to be experimental. Seto got chocolate mocha. It wasn’t Atem’s treat after all. Once the vendor saw the owner of the park placing his order, all bets were off. The treat was pro-bono.

“How is it?” Seto asked.

Atem broke a chunk of his waffle bowl off the edge and dipped it in his ice cream. “Pretty good. Wanna try?”

Atem held the bit of cone and ice cream out to Seto, passing it along. But Seto misinterpreted this, leaned down, and ate it right out of his hand. Atem stirred his ice cream around his bowl and turned away flustered. Seto bumped him with his shoulder and held out his spoon. “You want to try mine?” he asked.

“I—I’m fine. I don’t like my coffee cold.”

Atem cleared his throat and looked around the vendor square. “Where did Noah and Mokuba go? I haven’t seen them since the photo stand.”

“Probably went on another ride,” Seto said, indifferently. “Should I call them?”

“No … that’s okay,” Atem said slowly. “They’ll find us when they want us. Maybe they’re tired of roller coasters.”

Seto nodded. “Shall we sit?”

They sat on a bench together in silence, eating their ice cream. They watched children running across the square, listened to the delighted screams from the rides behind them. It was pleasantly cool for a summer day and the rush that surrounded them made the quiet bench feel more peaceful and still.

“So,” Atem said.

“So.”

“How have things been with you? I haven’t seen you since … ”

“Egypt,” Seto concluded. “Yeah.”

“You duel me. You give me an ultimatum. You win, you bring me back to this world, and then you disappear.”

“I’d been neglecting many aspects of the company during my time trying to retrieve you. I’d just released a new duel disk. I got busy.”

“You seem to have plenty of time to text,” Atem replied. He broke off a chip of his bowl.

“Speech to text. I can work without hands.”

“You haven’t asked me to duel since you won. At least not until today. I feel like that was more of a tease than a real offer.”

“It was a real offer; I’m surprised you didn’t take it. I thought you loved duelling.”

Atem crunched the remnants of his bowl. “I don’t love duelling,” he said. “I love challenges. Any kind of game—doesn’t matter. Sometimes I wished you and I did more than just duel.”

Seto scraped the bottom of his bowl. “Like go to amusement parks?”

“Or Burger World. Or the movies. Yugi wouldn’t mind you coming over for a game night now and then.”

“I don’t care what Yugi minds. I care what you mind.”

Atem looked at him.

“If you want to hang out with me, invite me,” he said.

“I have. Just last week, I asked if you wanted to join us for—”

“No. Not a group invite. You make plans with them face to face then invite me like a third party. Make plans _with_ me. Invite the others if you want, but I want to be part of your plans. Or,” he turned to look him in the eye, “Make plans with _me_.”

Atem stared at him. “How do you mean?”

Seto sat back and tossed his bowl and spoon in the bin beside them. “You’ve been doing pretty well today. Next time, maybe we won’t have to rely on my little brothers.”

He stood and placed his hands on his hips, surveying the area. “What should we do next?” Seto asked. “The Crush Card Virus Virtual ride? Buster Blader Blast? They have these targets you shoot at as you move through the fortress. I bet I’d score higher than you.”

Atem slipped his hand through the crook of Seto’s arm and pulled him forward. “White Lighting Blitz!” he cried.

“We just ate! That’s one of the fastest roller coasters in the park!”

“Don’t be weak, Kaiba; challenge me! Last one to lose their ice cream wins.”

Seto was weak against the pull of Atem on his arm. “And just what do I win?”

“You haven’t won yet. We’ll figure it out later. You’ll treat me to dinner, maybe.”

“Look who’s cocky now.”

Seto’s heart was in his throat the entire ride, but it wasn’t from the force of the roller coaster. On the third upside down turn, Atem had grabbed his hand for dear life. Even as they exited the ride, he hadn’t let go.

As it grew darker, Noah and Mokuba came out of hiding. They’d spent their day in and out of the arcade after they’d made sure that their plan was working, and Noah had spent his allowance on a ridiculous assortment of souvenirs, not limited to Kaibaland shirts and Blue Eyes spiked hats. As the hour of the fireworks show came on, they found their way back to their chaperones. The only setback was, when they approached, Seto and Atem released their hands to greet them.

“Hey kids,” Seto said. He ruffled both of their heads and grinned. “So, you ditch us all day and come back to get dinner? I considered going ahead without you two. We made reservations at a great barbecue place downtown and if we aren’t there at our seating time, we’ll get bumped.”

“Better hurry up, or it’s family mart meals for you tonight!” Atem threatened.

Noah and Mokuba gaped. “No!” they protested.

“Come on, the park’s closing in half an hour anyway. Didn’t you go on all the rides you wanted?”

“We wanted to stay for the fireworks,” Noah said. “Yo—” Mokuba stepped on his foot “—We were going to ride the ferris wheel and watch them light up!”

Seto turned and looked over his shoulder. “The ferris wheel?”

Atem frowned. “Is that really the best way to see them?” he asked.

“The viewing from the benches isn’t nearly as good. The ferris wheel is the highest place in the park, right up close to the action!” Mokuba said.

Noah was already dragging them by the sleeve. “Let’s go! Hurry, hurry, before the show starts!”

“And before the line gets too long.”

Atem and Seto relented didn’t have time to argue as they were pushed and tugged from either end. Neither could get a word in over the barrage of commands to move their feet.

“Fine, but just know it might mean leftovers for dinner. Or a packaged meal,” Seto warned.

“Fine, fine! Just move it!” Noah grunted.

They made it right in the middle of the rush. In line were couples by the score, all looking for the same romantic situation the ferris wheel provided. But Seto and Atem didn’t notice. They were watching the sky, distracted by what little they could see of the show.

“I’m not too sure about this. I can’t see anything with the ferris wheel in the way,” Seto grumbled. “We’ve already missed the first half waiting in line. And the cars are enclosed, unlike the wheels at little country fairs. We can’t really look up at the top.”

“That’s not important,” Mokuba said.

Atem craned his neck, trying to catch a glimpse of the show. “Isn’t that the whole point?”

Noah crowded in front of Mokuba, shoving him back. “What he means is, we’ll get a great view from the side window. They’re huge! And there won’t be any buildings blocking the view from up there.”

“Still.” Seto looked at his phone, checking the time. “The ferris wheel is pretty slow; it takes about twenty minutes to go all the way around. We might still be on the rising end by the time the show reaches its climax.”

Mokuba and Noah exchanged worried looks.

“Group of four?” the doorman asked.

It was too late for adjustments.

Seto climbed into the car, Atem behind him. The car moved slowly, but Mokuba and Noah moved deliberately slower. They had no excuse not to enter the car. That is, until Noah had a burst of inspiration.

“Mokuba! My battery’s running down!” he cried. “I just hear the warning alarm buzz.”

Mokuba’s face lit up. “We’ve got to hurry and get you to a charging station! Don’t worry, I can get us into the employee lounge with my keycard and we’ll hook you right up.”

Atem leaned half out of the car. “What’s the big deal? Can’t you just charge your phone at home?”

“It’s not his phone,” Seto corrected. He looked panicked. “We should get you home. I told you you’d run down if you got too excited!”

“Oh no, it’s not a big deal,” Noah said. He waved a hand dismissively. “We’ll just get plugged in and meet you after the ride.”

“But—!”

But Mokuba slammed the car door in his face. He and Noah stood to one side and waved goodbye before dashing off.

“There are some viewing binoculars on the cafe terrace overlooking the park,” Mokuba said mischievously.

“Perfect,” Noah snickered.

Seto and Atem sat opposite one another in the car. It was dark in between the colorful bursts of the fireworks, and the light shone hypnotically on Seto’s shoes. He was finding it difficult to look Atem in the eye. He had done once when they first got on, but the lights dazzled and danced in his eyes and he’d been caught staring.

He’d been caught staring on a number of occasions. The moment he stepped into the throne room, he’d finally caught Atem staring back. The expression on his face was enough for Seto. It was enough to give him what he needed to win and bring him back. It might take him another five thousand years to earn such a look from Atem, but he’d never again lose the opportunity to try. He needed to bring him home.

“They were right,” Atem whispered.

Seto looked. Atem was pushed up against the window, gazing in awe at the display. It was another first expression. It was one that only he had the privilege of seeing. He wanted to have every one of his first experiences for himself.

Atem smiled at him. He quickly looked away.

For all his thinking, he was a coward. Grand life and death gestures were more natural. He didn’t know how to approach the small, the intimate. It was easier to act noble and self-sacrificing with his back against the wall. If he was dead, he didn’t have to see what came after.

When Atem looked away again, he felt like dying. Like a child, he wanted it both ways. He wanted it safe. He wanted to watch Atem smiling at him, just for him, but he didn’t want to be seen. He didn’t want anything acknowledged. As long as they were dancing on the edge of things, they couldn’t fall on either side. He was fine just dancing. And yet.

“I’ve never seen anything like it,” Atem said. “Did you make these?”

Seto joined him in looking out the window. “No,” he said. “If you mean to ask if I invented fireworks, they were around long before my time. But I did have a hand in planning the show itself: picking the colors, the music…”

“It reminds me of you. Explosive, powerful. It demands attention and makes it hard to look away. It’s beautiful, all of it.” Atem looked at him, a soft expression. “Everything you have a hand in turns out that way.”

A large red flash of light distracted Atem, who cried out in delight. Even as the car all painted in red light began to grow dark, a bit of red remained with Seto.

“Atem…”

Atem turned to him. He looked surprised. “You used my name,” he said.

Seto put a hand to his lips and leaned back. “Well, what else should I call you? I can’t keep calling you ‘pharaoh’ all the time.” It came out too defensive and he bit his tongue.

“I just wasn’t expecting it. Nobody really calls me by that name.”

Seto looked at him.

Atem’s face was lit up in gold light, but a shadow fell over it. “In the afterlife, it was _always_ pharaoh. It felt impersonal, even though I knew many of them so well. With you, it’s a word of acknowledgement. Yugi and the others try to use my name, but it never comes out quite right. It feels too forced. More often than not, they call me by the name they gave me—Yami.” He fiddled with the gold band around his wrist. “But from you, it sounds so natural. So easy.”

Seto leaned forward, his elbows resting on his knees. “Kaiba is impersonal too, you know.”

Atem blinked.

“What do you mean?”

Seto clasped his hands together. That had been hard enough to say. He steeled himself and said, “We aren’t acquaintances. We haven’t been for a long time now. Yet, you only ever call me Kaiba. At one time, I simply thought you’d forgotten my first name, but then it became obvious that your choice was deliberate.”

He hesitated.

“I … I want you to stop calling me Kaiba,” he mumbled. “I want you to call me—”

“Seto.”

He looked up.

At that moment, the sky shattered into a brilliant chaos of flashing light. Gold shimmer rained down around them. Blue sparks burst into bloom. All of this reflected in Atem’s wet eyes. Seto was deaf to the rapidly increasing fireworks. All he heard was his own heart thundering in his chest and the echo of that one word. A rocket whistled through the air and exploded red. He felt it in his chest. He reached forward and took Atem’s hands before the glow faded.

“I want you to stay with me,” he said.

A burst of green. He leaned closer. Atem squeezed his hands back.

“Atem.”

A flash of purple. All eyes on him.

“I …”

But he never finished the thought as he closed the distance, capturing the pharaoh in a kiss. The climax raged on outside, without a single pause for darkness in the car. Atem closed his eyes, kissing him back. Then his hands were on Seto’s face, holding him close. Seto pulled him closer.

When they opened their eyes again, they were on their way down once more. But Seto had Atem in his arms.

Isono stood, ready to open the car door. The doctor had finally taken the cast off and he was back at his post, witnessing the chaos that had come in his absence. He smiled as he watched Seto and Joey argue back and forth on the walk outside of the Kaibadome.

“It’s not a date!”

“It is.”

“There’s no way! What’s so special about the millionth rematch? A date is something romantic like going to dinner, _alone_ , or a walk in the park, _alone!_ It’s not a date if you bring all of your friends along!”

“Does it count since _you_ decided to tag along with them?” Seto replied.

Atem was wrapped around his side, chuckling. “Be nice, Seto.”

“Eight weeks and I’m still not used to hearing that name from anyone but Mokuba,” Yugi joked.

“I think it’s sweet,” Teá added. “Maybe eventually we’ll all be calling him Seto.”

“Don’t count on it,” Seto sneered.

“Kaiba.”

Seto cringed as the name left Atem’s lips. “Come on,” he said. “What’d I do to deserve that?”

“Be _nice._ ”

Isono did his best not to laugh.

Mokuba and Noah grinned cheekily up at him.

“Kinda makes up for the whole foot incident, doesn’t it?” Noah asked.

“If I knew it’d lead to this, I’d have kicked through a wall after the first day he returned.”

Mokuba shook his head. “You foot had nothing to do with it. It was our plan to get them to go out to the park that did it.”

“In that case, perhaps I’ll ask master Kaiba to reinstate the snack restriction after all,” Isono replied.

The boys scrambled to go meet their friends, avoiding Isono’s twinkling eye.

Isono hummed to himself. His boys were doing just fine it seemed.

**Author's Note:**

> For my friend memebirbsupreme. Happy birthday!
> 
> To find out more about me and how to support my work, click below:  
> https://dorkmagicianem.tumblr.com/about


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